The Mental Game with Sam Brief

Episode 41 of The Mental Game brings aboard Boston Red Sox Development Coach Katie Krall. Krall, who graduated from Northwestern University just four years ago, has long vied to work in baseball and in January was hired to work with the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs in the Red Sox system. Krall previously spent time with the Cincinnati Reds and in the Cape Cod Baseball League before leaving the game...

Episode 40 of The Mental Game features Paul Marlow, AKA Tall Paul, founder of Never Alone, an online resource leading the conversation on day to day mental health help. Marlow, formerly a Toronto Blue Jays draft pick, believes that everyone can work on bettering their mental health, just like with our physical health. Marlow started Never Alone after a traumatic period in his life, during which he...

Episode 39 of The Mental Game features Boston Red Sox Minor League pitcher Chris Troye, a philosophical and positive thinker zoned in on his mental skills. Troye attended UC Santa Barbara, where he rapidly emerged as a stud pitcher and top prospect. But as a sophomore, Troye tore his UCL and missed the entire 2020 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. That’s when Troye hunkered down and lear...

Episode 38 of The Mental Game features Freddie Stevenson , former pro football player, author and activist. Stevenson rose from a childhood of homelessness and poverty to the NFL. Then, after his playing career which featured a National Championship at Florida State and a stint with the Chicago Bears, Stevenson experienced severe depression, bringing him to despair. But he harnessed the power of a...

Episode 37 of The Mental Game features Kieran Lovegrove, a retired Minor League Baseball pitcher who has made waves as an activist speaking out on baseball’s “mental health crisis.” Lovegrove made waves in a September ESPN.com piece by Joon Lee in which he details his harrowing journey as a young minor leaguer, which included severe anxiety and depression, alcoholism and a suicide attempt. Lovegro...

Episode 36 of The Mental Game brings aboard Scottie Lindsey, currently in his fourth season as a professional basketball player. Lindsey plays for the Windy City Bulls, NBA G League affiliate of the Chicago Bulls. Lindsey played college basketball at Northwestern University, where he powered the Wildcats to the program’s first-ever NCAA Tournament berth in 2017. From there, he has made three stops...

Episode 35 of The Mental Game features Austin Anderson, Director of Athletic Communications at Judson University (Illinois). As a young child, Anderson overcame significant mental illness and “feels that a main purpose of the remainder of his life is to share his experiences, make awareness for neuro-immune illnesses, and discuss mental health in the modern age.” Anderson operates “Minds of Meanin...

Episode 34 of The Mental Game features pitcher Jordan Kipper, a former Los Angeles Angels draft choice most recently starring for the Chicago Dogs of the American Association. A graduate of TCU, Kipper is now in his eighth professional season. He reached the Triple-A level of Minor League Baseball with the Baltimore Orioles organization and served as the ace for the Dogs this past season, earning...

Episode 33 of The Mental Game features National Champion tennis star Peyton Stearns. Stearns is a sophomore at the University of Texas at Austin and has already etched herself as one of the top young stars in the country. In the spring, she led the Longhorns to an NCAA title and was named Most Outstanding Player. She then earned a qualifying wild card for the women's singles draw at the U.S. Open,...

Episode 32 of The Mental Game features Chicago-based actor and mindset coach Tony Rossi . Tony has performed professionally in both the Boston and Chicago markets. Prior to making the move to Chicago, he worked with Greater Boston Stage Company and Boston Children’s Theatre . His commercial work includes BUNN, Ortiz, Fanatics, and others. He now is a mindset coach and certified speaker who helps f...

Episode 31 of The Mental Game brings on Jake Dahlberg, a fifth-year professional pitcher who just signed with the San Francisco Giants organization. Up to July 20, Dahlberg was pitching for the Chicago Dogs of the American Association. Note: We recorded this episode on July 19, one day before Dahlberg was signed by San Francisco, validating his commitment to the mental game. Dahlberg, a University...

Episode 30 of The Mental Game brings on the podcast’s first-ever return guest, Dr. Harold Shinitzky. In a lightning bolt moment for sports and mental health, Shinitzky joins to discuss where we stand, including the strong reaction to Naomi Osaka’s very public ordeal with her mental health. Shinitzky and Sam Brief delve into how the media should cover mental health, why fans get wrapped up in athle...

Episode 29 of The Mental Game brings on Dr. Wendy Borlabi, Chicago Bulls Director of Performance and Mental Health. In addition to her role with the Bulls, Borlabi also manages a private practice, Borlabi Consulting and consults the NBA. In her past, Dr. B served as a psychologist for the United States Olympic Committee and as an Athletic Consultant at James Madison University. Borlabi also founde...

Episode 28 of The Mental Game features 9th year professional baseball outfielder Brennan Metzger. Now in his debut season with the Chicago Dogs, Metzger was a San Francisco Giants draft choice in 2012. In 2013, Metzger, who suffers from Crohn's disease, was hospitalized for over a month, undergoing a major surgery that removed his large intestine. He also entered into four emergency surgeries that...

Episode 27 of The Mental Game features Megan Skaggs, a six-time All-American gymnast at the University of Florida. Before stepping foot on Florida’s campus, Skaggs had already earned two medals for U.S. Gymnastics. Now an accomplished collegiate gymnast entering her fifth year, Skaggs is locked in on her mental game and shares her recipe for overcoming the myriad obstacles of an elite gymnast. On...

Episode 26 of The Mental Game brings aboard Jonathan Jones , a student-athlete development consultant, TedX speaker, podcast host and former student-athlete. Jones played basketball at Richland College and the University of Texas at Tyler, a tenure he says was rife with costly mistakes. Now, he advises current student-athletes on their development, focusing deeply on mental health. Jones recently...

Episode 25 of The Mental Game features Dr. Veronica Ivy , world-champion cyclist, professor of philosophy and activist for human rights. In 2018, Ivy became the first transgender world champion in track cycling, then won another title the next year. Her athletic feats, however, have spawned vitriol from critics who claim that, as a transgender woman, she has no right to compete in women’s sports....

Episode 24 of The Mental Game features Xavier Fulton, former NFL, CFL and University of Illinois football player. After starring at Illinois, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected Fulton in the 5th round of the 2009 NFL Draft. Fulton’s subsequent NFL career was marred, however, by injuries and cuts, before he settled in the Canadian Football League, winning the 2013 Grey Cup with the Saskatchewan Roug...

Episode 23 of The Mental Game features writer endurance sports writer, coach and athlete Matt Fitzgerald .  A runner since the age of 11, Fitzgerald has channeled his love of endurance into writing. The New Hampshire native has authored nearly 30 books, many focusing on the mental side of endurance sports, including “The Comeback Quotient and “How Bad Do You Want It?” which this podcast’s hos...

Episode 22 of The Mental Game Podcast features 13-year MLB veteran and certified mental skills coach Bob Tewksbury.  After pitching for six big league teams and winning 110 games, Tewksbury earned a master's in psychology and enlisted as a mental skills coach with the Boston Red Sox, where he won three World Series rings. He then moved to the San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs before craft...

Episode 21 of The Mental Game Podcast features world-renowned BASE Jumper, skydiver, author and CEO Matt Gerdes.  Gerdes is one of the world’s top BASE jumpers, completing 1,200 jumps and skydives to date. He authored  The Great Book of BASE and also co-founded Squirrel Wingsuits .  On the podcast, Gerdes brings us inside the mind of a BASE jumper. As one of the world’s most dangero...

Episode 20 of The Mental Game Podcast features Kansas City Royals broadcaster Joel Goldberg.  Goldberg serves as pregame and postgame show host for the Royals on FOX Sports Kansas City while also hosting the “ Rounding the Bases ” podcast. In addition, Goldberg is a renowned public speaker, tailoring his message to the value of people. As he says, “it’s always about people.”  Goldberg al...

Episode 19 of The Mental Game Podcast features former Major League pitcher D.J. Snelten. Snelten pitched for the San Francisco Giants in 2018 and is now a member of the Chicago Cubs organization.  After leaving the Giants, Snelten briefly joined the Orioles before spending the 2019 season with the Chicago Dogs of the American Association. In Chicago, Snelten experienced a mental turnaround, i...

Episode 18 of The Mental Game Podcast is with the Director of Meditation Training at the University of Wisconsin Athletic Department, Chad McGehee.  McGehee is literally one-of-a-kind: He’s the only Director of Meditation at an athletic department (as far as he knows). He serves a unique role in strengthening the minds of Wisconsin Badgers across all sports. On the podcast, McGehee touches on...

Episode 17 of The Mental Game Podcast features former NBA and ABA star Swen Nater.  Nater won two championships playing for the great John Wooden at UCLA. Now an author and motivational speaker, the Dutchman heeded Wooden’s famous philosophy while serving as a practice player behind Bill Walton.  Nater was born in the Netherlands and immigrated to the U.S. as a nine-year-old. Before step...